CHCCOM001 - Provide first point of contact

Contents

Welcome to theunit 'Provide first point of contact'.

The resources you will find here are designed to supportthe knowledge and skills required to greet clients and exchange routine information, to prioritise the individual's needs, and to respond to immediate needs.

You will find the learning material divided into four key topics:
Topic 1: Greet and observe people
Topic 2: Follow organisational procedures to collect routine client information
Topic 3: Identify priority of need
Topic 4: Provide service information

About your assessments

This unit is competency based. Your assignments have been designed for you to demonstrate you have the skills and knowledge required for the unit.

What to do

To develop your skills and knowledge:

  1. Download and familiarise yourself with what you need to complete for your assignments. You'll find your assignments on the Online Learning Support (OLS) site under the 'Assessments' tab.
  2. Work through this learning resource and then complete the assignments.
  3. There are activities throughout this learning resource which you can complete to enhance your learning - you do not need to submit these activities to OTEN.

Topic 1 - Greet and observe people

What does it mean toprovide first point of contact?

Simply, it refers to thefirst personwho is most likely to meet and greet the client.

Regardless of job title, the first point of contact is the public face of the organisation.

The role may include a range of responsibilities, and can generally be characterised as follows:

  • Staffing reception area.
  • Meeting and greeting clients andvisitors.
  • Answering phones.
  • Handling initial enquiries.
  • Collecting information.
  • Referring the client to the most appropriate staff member, or service.
  • Administrative tasks that include filing, photocopying, faxing, typing.

Your job description will outline what your responsibilities are and your supervisor will provide you with information on policies and procedures in relation to providing information and services to clients.

First point of contact can be characterised by a broad range of roles. We may be doing anything from photocopying and filing through to taking messages for staff members.All of what we do is important but nothing is more important than our work with clients.We are the first point of contact.First impressions count and in most cases, the first impression is you.

Remember it is important to:

  • greet and observe the client in a respectful and empathetic manner;
  • allow theclient to feel they are not being judged, and
  • allow the client to be open and honest about why they are accessing the service.

Important points to consider:

  • Listento andgreet clients in a pleasant, respectful and accepting way.
  • You will need to respond to distressed clients in a relaxed and calm manner and seek assistance as required.
  • You will need to be able to report observations about the client to the appropriate person within the organisation. Remember to follow your organisation’s policies and procedures manual if you have any questions relating to how to do this.
  • Prioritise the need for service - Remember it can often take a lot of courage for a client to access your service and therefore we want to make it a positive experience. You will need to prioritise the client's needs. For example, ask them if they have somewhere to sleep for the night, ask them if they have access to food? Once you have prioritised their needs you can then work with the client in a more holistic manner which may involve service provision and referral.

Listen to and greet the client in a pleasant, respectful and accepting way

Listening is very different from hearing.

Hearing is receiving the actual information given to you, while listening involves paying attention to what is being said.

Listening involves giving the person your full attention, while attempting to understand the person in their social context, and letting them know you are genuinely interested in what they have to say.

Active listening means you are paying all of your attention to the other person and are concentrating on what that person is saying.

The skills of active listening include:

  • Looking at the person while they are talking and taking into consideration all facial expressions.
  • Leaning towards the individual to show that you are paying attention and being attentive.
  • Concentrating on what is being said.
  • Paying attention to yourbody language and presenting yourself as having a keen interest in what is being said, e.g. turning towards the client, ensuring you are sitting or standing in a relaxed position, and using appropriate facial expressions.
  • Observing the body language of the client, e.g. if the client appears uptight or nervous, you may need to respond using calming techniques.
  • Listening to the tone of voice of the individual - this can be indicative of how the other person feels or is responding.
  • Staying calm and patient and avoiding interrupting the other person.
  • Where necessary, clarifying the information that has been presented to ensure you understand it.

Keep in mind that each individual has their own complex history and background. Therefore, it is possible that they will express themselves in different ways and not all people will have the ability to express themselves well.

Active listening

Active listening enables us to suspend our own judgments and, in the short term, needs to really attend to what the other person is saying.In terms of difficult or challenging behaviour, active listening may enable you to defuse a situation by providing an opportunity for the person to voice their needs and to feel that they are being heard.

Active listening involves:

  • Attending
  • Following
  • Reflecting
  • Paraphrasing
  • Focussing
  • Summarising
  • Use of questions

Attending is our starting point for active listening. It involves looking, acting and being attentive. This is achieved through our own body language and actions (words, tone of voice, posture and non-verbal gestures).

Following requires you to listen to the person without interrupting and distracting them. Use simple responses that encourage the client to tell their story, including nods, verbals such as ‘mmm...’, ‘okay’, ‘uh-huh’.

Reflecting literally means reflecting what you think the client is feeling. It shows that you are listening and gives the client the chance to verify or correct what you are thinking. For example, 'It sounds like you are angry....'

Paraphrasingis similar to reflecting, however when you paraphrase you are verifying the words you have heard. You put what the other person has said into different words to confirm and/or clarify meaning. For example, ‘So, you are saying that ...’

Focussing is used to help both you and the client deal with the matter at hand. Often people are ill, angry or distressed and may complicate issues by bringing in unrelated incidents to the conversation. By focussing, you ask the person to focus on their main concern. For example, ‘Of the things you have mentioned, what is concerning you most right now?’

Summarising is used to summarise the most significant part of the conversation by relaying it back to the client. This assures both of you that you genuinely understand what is being said.

Building rapport

Effective communication enables connection and understanding to be built between client and practitioner. It is self-perpetuating in that it lays a foundation for ongoing and effective further communication. In building rapport with a client, we build a harmonious or emphatic relationship or connection with the client.

Establishing rapport with a client means building a situation that will foster trust, confidence, openness and commitment to the process that you and the client are undertaking. It is a two-way thing. Rapport is not gained by applying a set of rules to a communication situation. It involves genuine empathy, trust and commitment from both parties.

Without building rapport, the communication process will inevitably fail; we will be building a structure without foundations.

Some key factors in establishing this initial relationship might include:

  • Providing a private and welcoming environment in which to meet.
  • Providing an introduction about yourself and your role.
  • Being warm and friendly in your approach.
  • Creating a climate of trust and confidence.
  • Being relaxed, in order to encourage the client to relax.
  • Being positive in your interaction, listening carefully.
  • Being in a position to focus on the client.
  • Providing the client with clear and simple information about your organisation and the services it provides.
  • Finding out the relevant background details from the client.
  • Finding out about the client's needs.
  • Finding ways of including the client's values and beliefs into the communication process.

Topic 1 Activity

Question 1

Match the following examples to the definitionsin the drop down menu.

Enter the letter a,b,c indicating the response which best matches each item on the left.

Possible responses:
Reflecting / ______/ a.OK - let me just sum up what you have been telling me
Paraphrasing / ______/ b.You have a lot going on now. What would you like help with today?
Focussing / ______/ c.So you are saying that you don't want to go to school any more
Summarising / ______/ d.It sounds like you are worried

Topic 2 - Follow organisational procedures to collect route client information

In providing first point of contact, it is important to collect information in accordance with the policies and procedures of the organisation.The specific types of information collected will vary depending on the work role and the organisational context.

Types of information to be collected can include:

  • Basic information such as name and address details of client.
  • Basic assessment.
  • Time attended, time departed.
  • Client profiles.
  • Client numbers.

Information is kept for various reasons including the day-to-day gathering and recording of client data and meeting quality assurance standards.

Information is collected from multiple sources including:

  • Via communication with clients.
  • Via communication with other parties.
  • Via written sources, i.e. case notes, enrolment forms.
  • Via observations.
  • Via external sources.

Once a client contacts your service it is important to identify:

  • their needs;
  • if your service offers what the client needs;
  • if they meet the assessment requirements of your service;
  • if a referral is required.

The way in which you gather the information from the client will vary according to your service's policies and procedures.

Always remember the client's right to confidentiality.

Record and store information

In all organisations, all records and documents must be stored securely and safely. All information about clients must be treated confidentially and must be stored under lock and key except for current working files. These files are usually stored in a particular area that is not accessible to the public.

Each organisation has its own procedures for recording and storing client records. Once a client has been discharged from that organisation, the records are then put into the archives for security reasons. However, they should be accessible for easy retrieval should the need arise. All records are kept until the client dies.

Depending on the organisation, some enter client details, including ongoing case notes, either onto paper or directly onto the computer. Either way, details of client care and services are confidential and should be kept in a safe, locked environment.

More often than not, your role will be to collect basic information rather than specific client information. Regardless, it is important to always follow organisational procedures when collecting information and ensure that you are only collecting information you are required to collect.

Seeking further information

In some situations you will be required to extract further information from the client to find out the reason for contact with the service.

This is done by taking time, by listening actively, and by taking your questioning a little deeper. The aim is to gain an accurate picture of the client’s needs and why they are here. This may involve letting them tell their story in more detail. When you are encouraging the client to describe their situation and the reason for making contact with the service, it is important to consider strategies for clarifying the information provided.

When seeking further information from the client, take the following points into consideration:

  • It is very easy to ask too many questions making the client feel like they are being interrogated.
  • You do not have to diagnose or be the counsellor.
  • If you are unable to provide the client with direct assistance, you may be able to provide them with other assistance.

Topic 2 Activity

Collecting information
Question 2

What types of information can be collected at the first point of contact?

Question 3

What are some of the sources for collecting information?

Topic 3 - Identify priority of need

One of the key skills you need to develop is awareness of the limitations of your own abilities and experience. If you feel that a situation calls for experience of a skill which is outside your range of abilities, then refer on.
This not only applies in the long-term, for example, clients that you may see over a period of time, but also to immediate situations. If, for example, you are unable to deal with a client’s behaviour, call someone immediately. This may be your supervisor or other more experienced staff, depending on who is readily available. Try not to put yourself in situations where support is not readily available.

When to refer clients

Clients are referred in the following circumstances:

  • To meet client needs, e.g. the agency may not provide emergency accommodation.
  • To provide a service not offered by the agency, e.g. referral to Centrelink to assess eligibility for allowance or pension.
  • To access specialist services.
  • When the limits of the professional competency have been reached - if working with a client is beyond your ability, refer on.
Referring young people

It is important to be aware of when to refer a young person to relevant support or specialist staff and agencies.

Similar to the above clients, we refer young people (and/or their families) to other support and specialist staff in the following circumstances:

  • When there are worker limitations.
  • Where there are agency limitations, e.g. the client or family may be requesting services that are beyond the scope of the agency.
  • Where there is a need to access more specialised services, e.g. suicide prevention programs, vocational education and training, case management services.

In any of the above, if you feel that the situation calls for experience or skill outside your range of ability, then seek assistance immediately. Do not assume you can handle all situations all of the time. There is no credit in ‘going it alone’ if you are offering the young person and their family less than high quality service. Regardless of the specifics, try not to put yourself in situations where support is not readily available.

Sources of referral

Referral sources may be intra-agency or inter-agency.
Effective referrals are a product of knowing:
  • When to refer
  • Where to refer
  • Who to refer to
  • The referralprocedure/policy
Your source of referrals might include the following:
  • Social worker
  • Youth worker
  • Psychologist
  • Medical services
  • Drug and alcohol services
  • Mental health workers
  • Registered nurses
  • Counsellors
  • Religious organisations
  • Case managers
  • Government agencies
  • Legal advisors
  • Emergency response workers/agencies (e.g. crisis care).
The needs of the client may be extremely varied and broad. Although each organisation would like to fulfil all of their client’s needs, this is often not possible. As a result, it may be necessary to refer the client elsewhere.

Referral process

Each organisation has specific policies and procedures in place relating directly to the referral process. Generally the referral process will follow 6 steps. Your role at each point depends directly upon the services offered by your organisation and your role within the organisation.

The steps involved in referring a client to an alternative service or organisation are:

Step 1

You and/or your client identify a need of the client that cannot be fulfilled by the services offered through your organisation.

Step 2

This need is discussed with the client and all possible options of services available to fulfil this need are also considered. The client is involved in the decision as to what type of service would be most appropriate in fulfilling this need.

Step 3

This information is documented according to policies and procedures. Where appropriate, or required, your supervisor is notified of the newly identified need in the client and also the identified services most likely to fulfil this need.

Step 4

Depending upon your role within the organisation, either yourself or your supervisor can take the necessary action to contact the relevant support services. This initial contact may involve organising additional assessments for the client or clarifying eligibility criteria. The client must always provide written or verbal consent prior to the release of their personal information.

Step 5

If necessary, either you or your supervisor can negotiate with the client and the appropriate services, to arrange an appointment time and exchange any necessary or relevant information.

Step 6

All contact with the client and the alternative service is documented according to organisational policies and procedures. This documentation should make clear exactly which organisation is responsible for what areas of service delivery and fulfilling the needs of the client.